My new 2014 Focus ST! Yes, another one...

User avatar
roninsoldier83
Posts: 664
Joined: Wed Sep 24, 2008 9:14
Location: Lakewood, CO
Contact:

My new 2014 Focus ST! Yes, another one...

Postby roninsoldier83 » Mon Jun 23, 2014 9:14

Not too long ago, I picked up a new 2014 Focus ST (ST1)! I was coming from an Infiniti G37x, so technically, it's a bit of a "downgrade" per se, but I have to say, the bang for buck the ST offers is impressive and thus far I'm really enjoying it! Here recently, my financial situation changed a bit (long story), so my original intention was to cut down on monthly expenses and overall debt level. With the incentives Ford is giving out right now and a little negotiating on my part, I ended up getting the new Focus ST for a whopping $19.7k!! I honestly would have had no idea Ford was giving out the FoST's for this kind of cash if it weren't for Tim- thanks to you sir!

I shopped the Focus' main competitors and none of them could come close to the bang for buck this car offers for the money! Buying the ST allowed me to meet all of my objectives without a problem:

-Drive a new warrantied car.
-Cut down on my monthly payment drastically.
-Reduce my overall debt level drastically.
-Significantly reduce my other monthly expenses with the combination of lower insurance and significantly increased fuel economy (the ST is rated at getting much better mileage- 26mpg combined vs 20mpg combined for the G37x).
-Meet all of my personal needs- 4 doors, decent enough cargo space to use as a daily driver, ect.
-Drive a fun car while I'm at it!

There will be a few things that I miss about my G37x, as it was equipped with considerably more features... but for the money, I really couldn't ask for more! It's also nice to get back to a daily driver that is considerably more fun to toss around in the corners! Living on the west side of Denver (Kipling/Hampden), a car that handles this well is a huge bonus for playing around in the mountains! As is the low-end torque from the quick spooling little turbo! Being boosted at our elevation is also a plus.

The car has economy car roots, but to be honest, for a $19k car with these moves (power and handling), it's actually much better than I expected it to be! Shockingly enough, I really like the shifter- good positive engagement with the "right" amount of effort- and the clutch is just the right weight as well IMO. I've also never driven a [street] car with a steering rack that was so quick and responsive. Probably not the greatest for long road trips (certainly not the worst I've driven by a long shot), but the turn-in is amazing for quick transitions! Very fun to say the least! The suspension also has a really nice balance of being sporty/planted and relatively compliant on the freeway. I didn't get the optional Recaro's, but to be honest, even the base seats aren't that bad and offer a decent amount of bolstering- significantly more than my G37x's old seats!

In my lifetime, I've probably owned ~15 cars or so and this is my first American car. That's saying something. Bravo, and hats off to Ford for stepping up their game in recent years and building a line-up that attracts an audience that might not have looked their way ~10 years ago! 'Merica!

Thus far, I only have a few minor complaints about the ST:

-Torque steer. Honestly not nearly as bad as some high powered FWD cars I've been in, but it would be nice if it was non-existent, or more tamed like it is in a new VW GTI.
-A LSD would be nice. Especially one like VW is putting in the new MK7 GTI that can transfer power to the outside wheel under hard cornering.
-A larger fuel tank would also be nice. Going from a 20 gallon tank to a 12.1 gallon tank will take a bit of getting used to!
-In order to take advantage of all of the rebates Ford was throwing out, I unfortunately had to finance through Ford Motor Credit and their ahem "less than stellar" rates. I generally keep around a ~800 credit score and have been spoiled by low interest rates for many years... but, that's not a big deal, I'll likely be refinancing through USAA ASAP, so it's really negligible long term- just more of a short term hassle to refinance due to FoMoCo's poor rates.

^^^But homestly, for $19.7k, I really have no right to complain haha! For the money, there's nothing on the market that can touch it at that price. And that fact puts a serious smile on my face. :)

I've owned a MK6 GTI in the past and have also driven the new 2015 MK7 GTI... and I'll be honest, if they were at the same price point, I likely would have went with the GTI.... but they weren't. Not even close. Not even with all the incentives VW is giving out to try and get the old 2014 MK6's off the lot, it's still not even close to the price paid for my FoST. I would say that the GTI would likely get the nod from me as being the overall daily driver, but only just slightly. Not nearly enough to justify the significantly higher real world cost! The local left over MK6's are going from around $23k and no one is letting the MK7's go for under sticker (maybe $500 off here or there), and at those price gaps (vs the $19.7k I paid), they don't offer anywhere near the bang for buck that the FoST does! Since I was shopping on a budget, Ford made my decision pretty easy. :)

I also test drove the new 2015 WRX... I won't lie, that car is good. Very good. Much better than previous iterations IMO- especially in the building quality/materials, lack of turbo lag and handling departments. If I had to choose between the FoST, the 2015 GTI and the 2015 WRX, with money being no issue, I would have likely picked up the WRX. Although the clutch/shifter would be rough for a daily- I actually preferred the CVT! Yeah, it shocked me too; Subaru did a very good job. But again, with current prices, the ST was WAY cheaper than the Subie and got significantly better fuel economy to boot. Great car, just more than I was looking to spend... Maybe in a couple years when finances are a bit more relaxed, we'll see... in the meantime, it would give Subaru time to re-think their "no more hatchback WRX" policy. :D

Well, that's enough of this short novel. Here's a quick pic of the new car:
Image

And here are a few I just took of my FoST sitting next to my '04 Mazdaspeed Miata:

Image
Image
Image

For the record, I have no intentions to mod the FoST as it will remain my daily [warrantied] driver; with the exception of picking up a set of winter/snow tires/wheels in a few months. If I feel like tinkering with something (and have the funds to do so), well, that's what the [paid off] turbo'd Miata is for. In the meantime, I'm going to enjoy my FoST as well as my less strained bank account. :)

Cheers!

-Brandon
AKA- [color="Blue"]arctic_blue83[/color]
Mine: 2015 Subaru WRX
Hers: 2013 Subaru WRX

User avatar
Huzer
Posts: 4607
Joined: Wed Sep 19, 2007 9:14

Postby Huzer » Mon Jun 23, 2014 9:14

Congrats! Glad you finally unveiled it. I like it in Oxford White.

As far as refinancing with USAA, at least that is super easy. I called, and the only thing I had to do was sign and fax/email back a signature doc and we were done. Took about 10 minutes. But yeah, the Ford Credit rate is absurd. I had 0 on the Tundra, and even Chrysler was around 1.9 on the GC. Ford was either 4.9 or 5.9, I forget which now, and I never even made a payment to them. I did get a "congratulations on paying off your vehicle!" letter though once USAA paid them off. Ha!

Quite similar garages. Other than some better covering floormats, tint, and snow tires for the winter, those are the only plans I have for the Focus. As soon as I think, ooh, maybe I'll get an AccessPort, then I think of the many, many things I have yet to do on the Miata.
[color="RoyalBlue"]1992 Miata Project[/color]

User avatar
speedjunkie
Senior Member
Posts: 5281
Joined: Wed Jan 02, 2008 9:14
Location: Colorado Springs
Contact:

Postby speedjunkie » Mon Jun 23, 2014 9:14

I think the newer ones look WAY better than the first gereration models. Nice choice.
Image

User avatar
roninsoldier83
Posts: 664
Joined: Wed Sep 24, 2008 9:14
Location: Lakewood, CO
Contact:

Postby roninsoldier83 » Mon Jun 23, 2014 9:14

Huzer wrote:Congrats! Glad you finally unveiled it. I like it in Oxford White.

As far as refinancing with USAA, at least that is super easy. I called, and the only thing I had to do was sign and fax/email back a signature doc and we were done. Took about 10 minutes. But yeah, the Ford Credit rate is absurd. I had 0 on the Tundra, and even Chrysler was around 1.9 on the GC. Ford was either 4.9 or 5.9, I forget which now, and I never even made a payment to them. I did get a "congratulations on paying off your vehicle!" letter though once USAA paid them off. Ha!

Quite similar garages. Other than some better covering floormats, tint, and snow tires for the winter, those are the only plans I have for the Focus. As soon as I think, ooh, maybe I'll get an AccessPort, then I think of the many, many things I have yet to do on the Miata.


Thanks buddy!

I honestly don't know if I'll even tint the Focus... although a set of all season floor mats wouldn't hurt for the winter. I'm bummed out that Ford gave the later Focus ST's (built after 3/31/14 IIRC) slightly larger brakes than the earlier models. Mostly because we can no longer fit 16" wheels on the car, in order to save money on snow tires. :( Oh well, I suppose I'll keep my eyes open for a set of 17's that will do the job...

Same thought process though: modding the Miata seems to make more sense. No more warranty + no need to rely on it = a better idea. Plus, while the Focus ST is a fun car to drive, it still isn't as fun as the Miata!

Although if I were going to mod the Focus, I don't know if I would buy an Accessport anyway.... Don't get me wrong, Cobb is a great company and the AP is a great product... but, Ford Racing's Performance Pack actually has a warranty to back it up (only 3yr/36k miles though). Not as much peak power potential as a pro-tuned Cobb AP, but it does have a warranty, and that's an appealing aspect... I'm just sayin'.
AKA- [color="Blue"]arctic_blue83[/color]
Mine: 2015 Subaru WRX
Hers: 2013 Subaru WRX

User avatar
erod550
Posts: 3764
Joined: Wed Sep 23, 2009 9:14
Location: Colorado Springs

Postby erod550 » Mon Jun 23, 2014 9:14

Congrats on the new car. See you again in 6 months when you're bored with it and get something else, lol.
2015 Ironman Silver Veloster Turbo - Bone stock and staying that way
1990 Crystal White Miata - Beater - Bignose 1.6L Swap, Robbins Top w/Glass Window, E-Codes, Air Horns, Brembo Rotors

Former Rides:
2011 Kona Blue Mustang GT 5.0
2009 True Red Mazdaspeed3 GT
2005 Flame Red SRT-4

User avatar
roninsoldier83
Posts: 664
Joined: Wed Sep 24, 2008 9:14
Location: Lakewood, CO
Contact:

Postby roninsoldier83 » Mon Jun 23, 2014 9:14

erod550 wrote:Congrats on the new car. See you again in 6 months when you're bored with it and get something else, lol.


LOL, that's real. It's a good thing I at least buy them right in order to avoid a massive amount of negative equity!

Although, I won't be able to afford anything new for a while... Or else I would have at least held onto the Infiniti until the new MK7 Golf R's came out. :D But I may not make it back into that disposable cash bracket for quite a while. Long story.

This was a move more out of need than anything else... with that said, if anyone knows where I can find a support group for Car Addicts Anonymous, I would be open to going to a meeting or two! :lol:
AKA- [color="Blue"]arctic_blue83[/color]
Mine: 2015 Subaru WRX
Hers: 2013 Subaru WRX

User avatar
Huzer
Posts: 4607
Joined: Wed Sep 19, 2007 9:14

Postby Huzer » Mon Jun 23, 2014 9:14

If you find the support group, let me know. I think this is my 23rd car.
[color="RoyalBlue"]1992 Miata Project[/color]

User avatar
roninsoldier83
Posts: 664
Joined: Wed Sep 24, 2008 9:14
Location: Lakewood, CO
Contact:

Postby roninsoldier83 » Mon Jun 23, 2014 9:14

Huzer wrote:If you find the support group, let me know. I think this is my 23rd car.


Ha! You've got me beat, I think I'm only on 16...

-1. '91 Geo Storm (1st car! I beat the crap out of that thing!)
-2. '96 Mitsubishi Eclipse GS-T (my first and last Mitsubishi... good old DSM reliability)
-3. '91 MR2 Turbo (absolute riot to drive! Too bad it kept breaking on me..)
-4. '04 Subaru WRX (1st Subaru... fell victim to going too far with the "mod bug")
-5. '03 Nissan 350Z (meh... looked good, was quick at sea level...)
-6. '06 Mazdaspeed 6 ($23k brand new; couldn't pass it up!)
-7. '06 Subaru STI (2nd Subaru... also fell victim to the "mod bug")
-8. '09 Infiniti G37x (change of pace from the STI, 1st auto)
-9. '07 BMW 335xi (similar qualities as the G37, but better in every way. I might have kept it longer if I didn't switch careers and take a $20k pay cut)
-10. '90 Mazda Miata (1st dedicated "project car", 2nd Mazda)
-11. '11 Mazda 3S (result of taking a HUGE pay cut- BMW had to go, 3rd Mazda)
-12. '12 VW GTI (I LOVED this car! Right up until the ECU fried almost a year after [APR] tuning it & I was told my entire warranty would be completely shot... incentive to sell... I liked it so much I got a...)
-13. '13 VW Golf R (probably the best all around car I've ever owned... I regretted it almost immediately after selling it & actually tried to get it back from the dealer... If I had the cash I would likely get an upcoming MK7 Golf R... 2nd VW)
-14. '13 Infiniti G37x (yes, I've owned two of them... good car, but not "great" per se... I had my reasons; long story)
-15. '04 Mazdaspeed Miata (like my 1st Miata, but on steroids! Due to rarity and overall satisfaction with the car, I'll likely hang onto it for a while. 4th Mazda.)
-16. '14 Ford Focus ST (1st American car, 4th hatchback).

^^^^When I look at the list now, I have a bit of nostalgia for a few of the cars on there... a bit of "WTF was I thinking?" for a few of the other cars on there... and overall, I can't help but think of how much cash I've thrown away on them over the years lol... but, at least it's been fun in the meantime. I didn't even count the bikes lol... This has really got to stop one of these years!

Tim, I'm thinking we should probably start our own support group... we can work on "coping with current cars" skills and whenever the urge arises, we can act as "sponsors". :D Something tells me we're not the only "addicts" we know locally...

I just had a thought for a new custom user title... :lol:
AKA- [color="Blue"]arctic_blue83[/color]
Mine: 2015 Subaru WRX
Hers: 2013 Subaru WRX

User avatar
millertime
Senior Member
Posts: 137
Joined: Mon Sep 09, 2013 9:14
Location: Denver Metro

Postby millertime » Mon Jun 23, 2014 9:14

I looked at one of these this weekend, I really liked it, but I don't think I liked it enough for 31k... that's new WRX money. How in the hell did you get it for under 20?

User avatar
roninsoldier83
Posts: 664
Joined: Wed Sep 24, 2008 9:14
Location: Lakewood, CO
Contact:

Postby roninsoldier83 » Mon Jun 23, 2014 9:14

millertime wrote:I looked at one of these this weekend, I really liked it, but I don't think I liked it enough for 31k... that's new WRX money. How in the hell did you get it for under 20?


The same way Tim did. ;)

It really wasn't that tough, I bought a base model ST (ST1) with an MSRP of $24,450. I financed through Ford Motor Credit in order to get a total of $2500 in rebates from Ford (down to $21,950). From there, I just talked the sales guy down to invoice, minus hold-back, DH, ect, to get to $19,749.

Actually, on the contract the selling price is listed as being $22,249 with $2500 in rebates listed (still $19,749 total). Plus DH & taxes. Although, since my G37x was worth significantly more money than the FoST, I didn't actually pay anything in taxes.

Basically, the dealer was looking for a unit count and I was looking for a cheap car payment. Needless to say, we made it work. :)


Truth be told, I've done this more times than I care to admit and I have a very simple format when I'm ready to make a deal. I'll just type up an email explaining that I'm only going to pay $XX,XXX for said vehicle (generally as low as I know they can go- sometimes a bit lower). In the email, I'll give plenty of information about myself and in a professional manner, explain that I'm ready to sign & drive today if they can give me what I'm asking for. I'll then send said email out to pretty much all the local dealers and start somewhat of a "bidding war". From there, I'll get several phone calls from Internet sales guys... the guy that offers me the best deal gets my business. It's time consuming and a pain in the neck, but it's effective and can be done without actually stepping foot in a dealership until I'm ready to sign papers. :)

Although getting a good price on a brand new car isn't too tough in my experience... Unless it's something rare/limited that they don't want to discount.... but, making sure you get a fair deal on your trade is another matter altogether and can be much more time consuming. Sure, you can sell your trade on your own, but doing so means that you don't get the tax credit; as you only pay taxes on the difference between the two vehicles. For instance, if you're buying a $25k car and your trade is worth $23k, you only have to pay taxes on the $2000 between the two values. In my case, since my G37x was worth more than my FoST, I didn't pay a dime in taxes. The way I see it, I try to find out what I could sell my trade for on my own and calculate how much the tax credit would be worth to me. If I can get the approximate trade value minus the tax credit, it makes sense to trade to a dealer in order to avoid the hassle of selling it on my own. For instance, if I could sell a trade-in (private party) for $27k, but the tax credit was worth about $1500, if the dealer offered me $25,500, it would be a break even situation and I would let them take the trade. Otherwise, it might make more sense to just sell it on my own.
AKA- [color="Blue"]arctic_blue83[/color]
Mine: 2015 Subaru WRX
Hers: 2013 Subaru WRX

User avatar
Saul_Good
Senior Member
Posts: 480
Joined: Sun Jul 22, 2012 9:14
Location: Cerritos, CA (DW says i can't play here anymore...)
Contact:

Postby Saul_Good » Mon Jun 23, 2014 9:14

Looks like im next to get a FoST judging the recent "own a miata, bought a FoST" peeps
Image

User avatar
erod550
Posts: 3764
Joined: Wed Sep 23, 2009 9:14
Location: Colorado Springs

Postby erod550 » Tue Jun 24, 2014 9:14

Yea I can't really talk much. I'm at 16 also. But I've kept the same 3 cars for 3.5 years now, which I'm pretty sure is the longest I've gone without buying a car since I was 19.
2015 Ironman Silver Veloster Turbo - Bone stock and staying that way

1990 Crystal White Miata - Beater - Bignose 1.6L Swap, Robbins Top w/Glass Window, E-Codes, Air Horns, Brembo Rotors



Former Rides:

2011 Kona Blue Mustang GT 5.0

2009 True Red Mazdaspeed3 GT

2005 Flame Red SRT-4

User avatar
roninsoldier83
Posts: 664
Joined: Wed Sep 24, 2008 9:14
Location: Lakewood, CO
Contact:

Postby roninsoldier83 » Tue Jun 24, 2014 9:14

Saul_Good wrote:Looks like im next to get a FoST judging the recent "own a miata, bought a FoST" peeps


Do it. :D

Really though, if anyone was interested in a FoST, now would be the time to pick one up while Ford is still giving away decent rebates. Although the upcoming [allegedly upgraded] 2015 Focus ST is right around the corner... who knows how much better/faster it will be in comparison. I have a feeling Ford might announce a LSD option; I suppose we'll see.

erod550 wrote:Yea I can't really talk much. I'm at 16 also. But I've kept the same 3 cars for 3.5 years now, which I'm pretty sure is the longest I've gone without buying a car since I was 19.


Nice! I've really got to get on that bandwagon... I think the longest I went was a little over 2.5 years with my old STI. I should really get my priorities in place...

I don't suppose you want to join the Auto Addicts Support Group as a sponsor? :D
AKA- [color="Blue"]arctic_blue83[/color]
Mine: 2015 Subaru WRX
Hers: 2013 Subaru WRX

User avatar
millertime
Senior Member
Posts: 137
Joined: Mon Sep 09, 2013 9:14
Location: Denver Metro

Postby millertime » Tue Jun 24, 2014 9:14

Sorry for all the questions. Never bought new before and neither has anybody in my family. I'm decent at haggling over used vehicles. How do you determine what a dealership's bottom dollar is before sending the email? Just search the intrawebs?

User avatar
roninsoldier83
Posts: 664
Joined: Wed Sep 24, 2008 9:14
Location: Lakewood, CO
Contact:

Postby roninsoldier83 » Tue Jun 24, 2014 9:14

millertime wrote:Sorry for all the questions. Never bought new before and neither has anybody in my family. I'm decent at haggling over used vehicles. How do you determine what a dealership's bottom dollar is before sending the email? Just search the intrawebs?


Yes sir, just do a bit of research on the Intrawebs. :)


On an unrelated note, I broke my word to the dealership.... instead of making 3 payments to them, I just refinanced the car through USAA in order to save on a few points of interest (2.25%) vs Ford's rates (5.9%). :)

Unfortunately for the dealer, I believe they will have to eat the hit from Ford Motor Credit... but, their finance guy tried to make a couple extra points on me on the back end anyway, so I really don't feel too bad.

And by that I mean he told me I was approved for 7.9%, knowing that I have a 770-800 credit score. :lol: He tried to feed me a line about the rate being so high because of the rebate; which is only partially true. I then told him the deal was off... mysteriously, a couple minutes & a phony phone call later, he tells me "I got it down to 5.9%". I said ok, with the plan of just refinancing a few days later (as soon as Ford generated an account number).

I then told the guy that I wasn't signing until I saw the approval on his screen... he turns the screen towards me and at the bottom it says "720+ credit score approved at 4.49%" lol.... I called him out on it and he told me "well, we can't give those rates to customers". Fair enough, I'll play the game. He explains to me that I can refinance anytime I want (no penalty for prepayment in the contract), but that if I do so prior to making 3 payments, they won't get full credit for the rebate from FoMoCo... After the whole shenanigan of playing car buying games with finance, my heart isn't exactly broken for them.

Had the guy been straight up with me rather than trying to play games, I would have probably just made the 3 payments so they could get paid.... oh well.
AKA- [color="Blue"]arctic_blue83[/color]
Mine: 2015 Subaru WRX
Hers: 2013 Subaru WRX


Return to “Piston Vehicle”

Who is online

Users browsing this forum: No registered users and 48 guests